mahlab survey 2011 corporate counsel

8/2/2019 Mahlab Survey 2011 Corporate Counsel

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SURVEY 2011CORPORATE }CORPORATE LAWYERS

COMPANY SECRETARIESCONTRACT LAWYERS

SEISMIC SHIFT }REDEFINING THELEGAL MARKET


2/18

CONTENTS

Foreword 1

Summary 3Corporate Lawyers 6

Company Secretaries 12

Contract Lawyers 15

Figures contained within tables in

this survey have been rounded to

the nearest $500 and are quoted in

local currency.

Mahlab Recruitment (NSW) Pty Ltd 2011

Mahlab Recruitment (Vic) Pty Ltd 2011

www.mahlab.com.au


3/18P1 MAHLAB SURVEY 2011 }CORPORATE

FOREWORD

Law in Australia:New Changes,New Challenges

BY TED DWYERThe current market isposing new questionsabout what makes agreat lawyer, as well ashow to create them.

A watershed event happened last

year in the Australian legal proession.

For the rst time in decades, the ee

income generated by the top 10 rms

in Australia contracted. And were

not talking about small numbers or

percentages, either. Depending on

who you talk to, the top 10 rms lost

$150 200 million in ee income in

a year. Some rms top line growthcontracted by 10%.

This is unprecedented. However,

we know that the legal market is

dynamically transorming beore

our very eyes. Much discussion has

ocused on the structural changes

and strategic responses that these

dynamics entail. This includes the

process o de-leveraging. Those

who view this process as a law

rm contracting, or getting smaller

by reducing overheads, do not

understand de-leveraging correctly.

Think o it more as a process o

creating a leaner, tter and more

client-ocused organisation. It is less

about protecting existing ways to

create prot, but more about nding

new ways to create high levels o

prot, with clients. And above all, its

about thinking about the lawyers

the rm will need to create to keepclients happy.

Its worth remembering here

that theres nothing wrong with

maximising protability. Prot is not

simply a number, but a resource that

supplies benets to all, including

clients. Highly protable rms

invest in high quality client service.

However, clients must always

come rst. Its important that all

lawyers start to understand therm as a client-centred organisation

that supplies benets (including

prot). Any lawyer who continues

to view the rm as a prot-centred

organisation that clients eed is

making a serious error in the current

market. In a market increasingly

dened by client needs, it is the

clients not just other lawyers who

dene what a great lawyer is.

Assumptions Drive Decisions

For the client-centred law rm, critical

questions that need to be asked now

are: what type o lawyer do quality

clients want to work with now, and

in the uture?; what lawyer do we

seek to create at the frm?; what

skills and abilities will these people

need?. This involves challenging

long-held assumptions about what

makes a great lawyer. Many rms

still dene great lawyers by their

level o technical expertise. For many

years, leading rms have used this

core assumption in how they view

lawyering: that it is undamentally

an intellectual vocation, ounded in

expertise. This dogma persists. For

example, a cornerstone o many law

rms recruitment and selection is

the academic results o youngstersrom prestigious universities. 80

90% o the learning and development

budget is aimed at creating highly

specialised experts, in one area o

law. Law rm compensation is based

on seniority, experience, intellectual

achievement and specialised

expertise, as well as production o

billable hours.

This is problematic in the current

market. Leading rms must above all

supply lawyers that clients want to

work with. Technical expertise is very

important, but it has to be delivered

in a way that resonates with clients.

Get it right and client engagement,

not to mention ee income, grows.

Get it wrong and the reverse

will happen.



The Holy Grail:Dierentiation and Intimacy

The current market reminds us that

law is, ultimately, a relationships

business. And we know that

clients view relationships as having

multiple components, technical

expertise being just one. The other

components o quality relationships

appear to be the same as those that

exist in our personal relationships

trust; responsiveness; empathy;

transparency; likeability; honesty; and,

above all, genuine caring, based on

demonstrable actions. Some rms

are thinking very eectively about

how to create relationship skills in

solicitors in a way that both enhances

client relationships, as well as

income and prot. These rms seek

to create a orm o intimacy withclients which makes it highly likely

that clients will seek new orms o

integration with their rm.

This eort is particularly relevant

when it comes to dierentiation.

Clients agree the level o client

service has never been higher. But

law rms are still perceived as

similar. This is despite the major

eorts o law rms to create a

dierence that resonates with clients.

Firms have invested very large

amounts o energy and resources

into creating that dierence. This

includes branding, discounting,

highly complicated pricing and

alternative ee agreements. All

these initiatives are valuable, but

oten exclude investment in people.

Law rms would be well advised to

base their dierentiation strategy

on what remains the core drivero our proession relationships,

specically on enhancing the myriad

o interactions between the rm and

clients that occur at matter and non-

matter level every day.

Creating Client Intimacy

Leading law rms have already

started the process o creating client

intimacy skills in lawyers, especially

in these areas:

Technology deploying the

ull range o options that new

technologies, especially Web 2.0

and social media, help to embedrelationships with clients around

individuals and practice areas.

Pricing rather than encouraging

lawyers to assume that all clients

simply want the lowest price, leading

to complicated scoped estimates

with endless caveats and variations,

these rms are helping their lawyers

recognise that clients approaching

quality rms will usually be ar less

sure o their needs than many

lawyers expect, and may thereore

be less resistant to premium pricing

than many lawyers assume.

Relationship building ocus on

the skills required to build quality

personal relationships, then apply

those skills to high quality clients.

The dierence will be palpable to

the client, leading to more work and

income or the rm.

Technical Specialisation in the

GFC, stories o banking and nance

lawyers twiddling their thumbs, as

their insolvency colleagues burnt

the midnight oil, were common.

However, what might be more

eective in uture is ensuring that

all lawyers are trained as experts

in counter-cyclical services. In

other words, when work is slow in

services relying on market liquidity(banking and nance, corporate),

these lawyers can be transerred

into services that are not (insolvency,

dispute resolution).

O course, working with clients to

identiy their needs requires skills

that need to be learned, practised

and rened. Lawyers are oten not

naturally gited in this area, or have

lost their natural gits as a result

o the very technocratic training

they have received. But law is a

relationships business. Lawyers

who dont spend time to improve

their skills in these areas may be

technically gited, but will increasingly

nd themselves shut out o client

relationships and then, out o

business itsel.

Ted Dwyer is the Director o Dwyer

Consulting. Ted provides law frms

with expert advice on proftability,

strategy, CRM and pricing.

Ted Dwyer 2011



SUMMARY

Welcome to Survey 2011.Mahlabs annual surveyis Australias mostcomprehensive survey

o the legal proession,encapsulating markettrends and accurate,current remunerationranges captured romthe 2011 salary review.We are pleased tobring you up to dateand comprehensiveinormation on marketconditions and trends inthe legal proession inAustralia and overseas.

Great changes have occured this year

in the Australian legal proession a

seismic shit in the private law rm

hierarchy and a signicant change in

the relationship between corporate

counsel and their legal providers.

Seismic shits in theprivate law frm hierarchy

and the relationshipbetween corporate counseland their providers

The unusually turbulent 2009 saw

the global economy in disarray and

lawyers struggling with previously

unheard-o salary reezes, neutral and

even backward career movement and

the disappearance o the overseas

experience as a career option.

In 2010 Mahlab reported a newlegal landscape: a steady increase in

employment, modest pay increases

and a pervading optimism in a

climate o rebuilding and renewal.

Rejuvenation, retention and

recruitment were key themes.

2011 has seen the proession thriving

and bold moves by key players, such

as more global rms entering the

Australian market, that have resulted

in signicant changes in Australianproviders. Natural disasters, political

change, and the mining boom

have contributed to the growth in

protability o the legal proession.

Lawyers have shaken o their

post-GFC caution and are now

on the move. Increased business

activity generally means more work

or lawyers, with mergers and

acquisitions once more on the rise

(although many practitioners are stillunder-employed compared to pre-

GFC days), and energy and resources,

construction and inrastructure and

employment lawyers in demand.

Litigation lawyers are also busy,

with an increase in insurance work

as a result o f oods, Cyclone Yasi

and ongoing class actions related

to corporate collapses. Insolvency

practitioners have perhaps been a

little disappointed in work volume,although expert teams are still busy.

While there has beengrowth in per partnertakings actual growth inrevenue has been moderate.

With employees once again mobile,

private practice and corporate

employers are being orced to

respond more switly to secure

new talent and are paying or theprivilege. This year, private practice

remuneration has risen 23%, with

band increases o 6.53%. Bonuses

or high perormers subsist,

although these tend to be linked to

achievement o budget as a starting

point. Sign-on bonuses have returned.

In-house salaries have risen a more

modest 4.69%. Legal employers

are eeling the pressure on salaries

which is being uelled by severalactors including the mining and

resources boom. The strong demand

or lawyers by private practice and

corporations in and/or servicing the

mining boom will continue.

Legal employers are eelingthe pressure on salaries

At the same time, the law rm

hierarchy has shited, with new

entrant global rms Allen & Overy,Cliord Chance and DLA Piper

(completing its merger with DLA

Phillips Fox) joining Norton Rose to

lure lawyers below partner level with

the promise o access to international

deals and reerrals, oshore

secondments and the glamour o the

new kid on the block and to attract

partners o major rms with a resh,

strong brand and a ull purse.

Major rms are vying or position,re-shaping their oering and their

leveraging and making dramatic

changes to their equity holdings

and the partnership as a whole.

They aim to improve protability,

to enhance their competitiveness

against Australian and global players

and, interestingly, to enhance their

allure as uture merger targets or the

international invaders.

KATHERINESAMPSON

LISAGAZIS



A number o partners have

responded to this undamental

re-shaping by upping sticks and

relocating to smaller rms (usually

mid rms) oten taking clients and

teams with them. Senior associates

and special/executive counsel are

wondering where their partnership

prospects lie in the new world order,

and are considering their options.

In the last 12 months, many mid

rms have benetted rom this

shuf ing or position at the top,

recruiting partners and teams

and applying traditional top

tier remuneration to new and

existing sta.

Against the backdrop o navel gazing

and adjustment o major rms,

corporate clients continue to exertpressure on hourly rates the rates

themselves and their very existence.

Pressure on hourlyrates continues

Outsourcing legal tasks oshore

or legal process outsourcing

(LPO) is also a growing trend, as

Australian rms join their US and

UK counterparts in assessing and

approaching LPO providers in Indiaand South Arica, or example. Their

corporate clients are already active

in this regard, with one quarter o

corporate respondents reporting

LPO activity.

There has also been a revival in in-

house recruitment activity, particularly

in mining and resources and banking

and nance. There is an increased

demand or in-house counsel in

Brisbane and Perth, Sydney andMelbourne. These opportunities have

generated strong responses rom

candidates, many o whom have

waited or two years or more or the

right opportunity to arise. There is

also a rise in company secretarial

roles, as an adjunct to a legal role or

as a stand-alone position.

In-house counsel are under

increasing pressure to contain costs

o external providers and to ensure

that the means o charging are more

predictable and stable, to look or

alternatives such as LPO providers

and to retain as much work in-house

as is easible.

We have also observed a trendto contain costs through the

recruitment o specialised lawyers.

Even employment law and litigation

matters, traditionally outsourced,

are being handled in-house

where possible.

The boom is in WAwhile other States arecautiously improving

The Australian proession isconsidered by overseas counterparts

as being in boom mode. Whilst the

Australian proession is aring better

than many o the overseas markets

the boom is happening in Western

Australia and the other States are

cautiously improving.

While the UK, Middle East, Asia and

the USA remain subdued, a small

number o overseas rms have

slowly and very cautiously begun toopen their doors in London and Asia

to Australian lawyers. Young lawyers

here are responding positively and

will be open to these opportunities.

About Survey 2011

Conducted online in June 2011,

input was provided by individuals

and employers across Australia

and internationally. Questions

were ocused on remunerationand benets, work habits

and practices, job and career

satisaction and retention and uture

employment intentions.

Survey 2011 responses are

supplemented by up to date data

collected rom Mahlabs Australian

and international clients and

candidates, with an emphasis on

inormation that ref ects 1 July

2011 reviews.



51%Female

49%Male

Gender o Respondents

38%

Melbourne

31%

Sydney

4% Perth

6% Adelaide

7% Brisbane

14%

Other

Location o Respondents

Once again we are grateul or

the support shown by our clients,

private practice solicitors, company

secretaries and corporate lawyers

who participated in the survey. Thank

you or your support.

We particularly thank the Australian

Corporate Lawyers Association

(ACLA), Young Lawyers o theLaw Society o NSW, the Young

Lawyers section o the Law Institute

o Victoria, The Victorian Women

Lawyers, The Women Lawyers o

South Australia, the Women Lawyers

o Queensland and Chartered

Secretaries Australia or circulating

our questionnaire to their members.

We appreciate their ongoing

commitment to making Survey 2011

a success. Thank you.

We welcome your eedback.Please direct your commentsto Sophie Waters, NationalMarketing Manager:[email protected].

Katherine Sampson Lisa Gazis

Mahlab grateully acknowledges the support o these industry associations

in circulating links to the online questionnaire to their members.



CORPORATELAWYERS

4.69% average salaryincrease

Bonus range: 10 50%o base salary

82% are satisfed withtheir job

Legal Provider Relationships

One third o corporate departments

have sought to change their

external legal providers in 2010

2011, compared to just under a

quarter in the previous year. A

common trend to emerge is that

corporate legal departments are

undoubtedly seeking better value

and greater f exibility in their external

ee arrangements.

Some examples o this include a

reduction in standard ees, increased

xed ee arrangements and more

innovation in ee structuring,

particularly or volume work.

The volume o workbrieed to external legalproviders is decreasing

58% o companies surveyed advised

that the volume o work they brieed

to external legal providers had

decreased, compared to 33% in

20092010.

29% o respondents advised that

their company had renegotiated

new terms with their external legal

providers in the last 12 months, a

similar gure to the previous year.

Outsourcing o legal workto o shore providerswill increase in thenext 1218 months

One quarter o companies surveyed

advised that they are currently

outsourcing legal work to oshore

providers. This number is set to

increase with almost one-third o

those surveyed advising that they

intend to outsource legal workto o shore providers in the next

1218 months.

These gures illustrate the

increasing popularity o outsourcing

arrangements or internal legal

unctions and ollows similar trends

overseas, particularly in the USA

and the UK. Companies intend to

outsource a broad range o work,

including discovery on major litigation

to corporate/M&A, und raising

and specic jurisdictional advice. A

signicant amount o high volume,

junior level legal work is also being

outsourced oshore.

The decision to outsource will

obviously impact the amount o work

sent to local external legal service

providers, and also the prole o in-

house counsel recruited.

Remuneration

Corporate lawyers received modest

increases to their salary packages

this year, in line with the conservative

reviews o the last couple o years.

A greater number o companies are

paying bonuses, and at higher rates

than last year where bonuses were

heavily constrained. This ref ects

a generally positive outlook o the

economy and a renewed condence

held by most corporations.

75% o respondents received salary

increases this year, compared tojust 44% in 20092010 and 36% in

20082009. This year the average

percentage increase in salaries

or corporate lawyers is 4.69%

compared to 4.06% in 20092010

and 3.5% in 2008 2009. Some

companies continue to pay above the

average and on occasion signicantly

higher to retain star perormers.

20082009

3.5%

20092010

4.0

6%

20102011

4.6

9%

Average salary increase by %

A healthy 68% o corporate lawyers

advised that they were satised withthe outcome o their salary reviews,

compared with 62.5% in 2009 2010

and 56% in 2008 2009 during the

height o the GFC.

200

82009

56%

200

92010

62.5

%

20102011

68%

Respondents satisfedwith Review



Greater ocus on bonuses

Whilst increases in base salary

packages remain relatively

conservative, the bonus component

received greater ocus in the

past year.

O the 71% o corporate lawyers

whose companies pay bonuses,

62% received a bonus this year,

compared to 58% o the 73% o

corporate lawyers in 2009 2010

who were entitled to receive a

bonus. The average range or

bonuses nationally remains between

10 50% o base salary with the

higher end applying to more senior

corporate positions. Bonuses are

generally calculated on a combination

o individual perormance, legal

department perormance andcompany perormance.

The bonus target or junior to

mid-level lawyers is 10 20%.

Interestingly, a reasonable number

o newly appointed lawyers at this

level had a xed amount included

in their packages as a bonus rather

than a percentage o their package,

with the whole or a portion paid

according to their individual and

companys perormance.

Newly appointed juniorto mid-level lawyers had afxed bonus rather than %

The primary reasons given or why

bonuses were not paid included the

business being cautious or the

company not perorming well. In

some instances, star perormers

received discretionary bonuses as a

retention strategy, where companiesdid not pay ormal bonuses.

Career Development

Corporate lawyers maintained a high

level o satisaction in their roles,

with 82% reporting that they are

either very satised or somewhat

satised, compared to only two

thirds o respondents in 20092010.

Despite increased workloadsand external legal provider cost

constraints, some o the key reasons

corporate lawyers enjoy their current

roles include the quality and diversity

o work, working in a team, work/lie

balance and having the opportunity

or strategic input.

Just over one third o corporate

lawyers advised that they were

considering leaving their current

organisation, a airly signicant drop

on last years 45%. 78% o these

lawyers said they would be seekinganother in-house legal role, compared

to 87% last year.

This all can in part be attributed to an

increase in the number o corporate

lawyers seeking to go overseas. 11%

advised that i they were to move it

would be overseas, compared to 7%

in 20092010. It should be noted that

it is still quite dicult to secure an in-

house role overseas particularly given

the international economic climate.

7.4% o corporatelawyers looking to joinprivate practice

Interestingly, there was also an

increase in the number o corporate

lawyers seeking to join private

practice, 7.4% this year, compared to

3.3% last year. This ref ects a more

buoyant private practice environment

oering greater opportunities.

Career development is the

primary reason cited by corporate

lawyers or moving to another

organisation (60%). When asked

i their organisation oered good

career progression opportunities,

65% o survey respondents said

their employer did not. Increased

remuneration, better management,

quality and diversity o work, team,

job security and work/lie balancealso rated as important actors in a

potential move to another role.

65% believe their employerdoes not oer good careerprogression opportunities

It is not surprising that corporate

lawyers cited career development

as their main motivator or seeking a

new role. With limited opportunities

to move up the hierarchy o in-house legal teams to more senior

roles, the primary challenge or the

managers o in-house legal teams

has become nding opportunities to

engage, motivate and challenge team

members with a view to retention.

Ensuring that team members

have a broad mix o stimulating

work, swapping the clients they

service, delegating responsibility or

managing junior sta or a project,

encouraging skills development in

areas such as company secretarial,secondments into the business, and

supporting urther study, (leadership

and management courses) are just

some o the innovative ways legal

managers have sought to develop

and retain sta.

Recruitment Activity

Recruitment activity was steady

throughout 20102011, with many

corporate legal departments seekingto expand. Although contractors and

secondees were once again relied

upon by some companies, many

chose to recruit on a permanent basis

with a view to reducing external legal

provider spend.

The corporate market remained

an attractive career alternative or

private practitioners despite an

improved local law rm market. With

more high quality legal work beingretained in-house and increased

expectations on in-house lawyers to

make a greater contribution to the

business, many private practitioners

view in-house opportunities as an

attractive long term career option.

Limited opportunitiesor the large pool o goodquality senior lawyers

Most opportunities are or junior tointermediate level lawyers (26 years

post admission experience), with the

senior end o the market remaining

tight. While the corporate and

government sectors have produced

some interesting senior level roles,

there are limited opportunities or

the large pool o good quality senior

lawyers to consider. As a result,

each senior role has received a

strong, competitive response rom

the market.

Senior lawyers have had to

be f exible in terms o their

expectations the level o the



role, nature o the company, sector,

whether they have management

responsibility and remuneration.

There has been a signicant amount

o recruitment by nancial institutions,

property and construction groups and

energy and resources companies.

Demand or corporate counsel in

the IT, proessional services, FMCG,media and entertainment, gaming

and health and pharmaceuticals

industry is also evident.

The Brisbane and Perth markets

are very active and experiencing

considerable growth. There is a

high level o demand or junior to

intermediate level lawyers with

general commercial law backgrounds

in both o these cities. Demand

is outstripping supply or qualitylawyers in these centres, particularly

those with energy, resources

and projects and construction/

inrastructure backgrounds.

A signicant number o the in-house

roles in Brisbane and Perth are with

resources or energy companies or

ancillary companies in the consulting

or engineering sectors. The

increase in the number o in-house

opportunities in these markets isdue to organic growth in team sizes

as well as the emergence o newly

created greeneld roles where

companies are establishing their

own internal legal unction or the

rst time.

Perth and Brisbaneemployers are competing orthe same pool o lawyers

A shortage o quality lawyers with

relevant experience in Brisbane

and Perth has led to a highly

competitive market with employers

oten competing or the same

pool o lawyers. This high level o

competition has led to an upward

pressure on salaries, particularly

amongst lawyers with a highly

sought ater skill set. Energy,resources, engineering, construction

and inrastructure organisations are

oten paying at the top end o the

Australian market to secure quality

lawyers. More lawyers rom other

States are willing to relocate to these

States or in-house opportunities. An

oer to assist with relocation costs

will increase the number o lawyers

who can be considered or a role.

The number o in-house counsel

working part time has steadily

increased over the last couple o

years. 16% currently work part time,

whereas the gure was 13% in

2009 2010 and 7% in 20082009.

Most respondents advised that

they worked part time due to amily

commitments (73%), while the

rest advised it was due to work/

lie balance.

20102011

16%

20092010

13%

20082009

7%

% o in-house lawyersworking part time

Recruitment Outlook

A steady stream o in-house

opportunities will be available, as

companies remain cautiously

optimistic about the economy. The

ocus will continue to be at the junior

to intermediate end o the market.

Some movement is anticipated at

the senior end o the market, as a

result o senior lawyers moving on

due to restructuring, to advance

their careers outside o law, newly

appointed CEOs wishing to appoint

a new general counsel or companies

deciding to appoint their rst in-

house counsel.



CORPORATE SALARIES } SYDNEYYear Level Range Mode

1 $65,000 $85,000 $80,000

2 $78,000 $98,000 $95,000

3 $92,000 $120,000$115,000

4 $110,000 $145,000 $138,000

5 $130,000 $165,000 $160,000

6+ $140,000 $235,000 $192,500

DGC $170,000 $280,000 $255,000

GC $175,000 $600,000+ $305,000

CORPORATE SALARIES } MELBOURNEYear Level Range Mode1 $58,000 $80,000 $76,000

2 $73,500 $95,000 $90,000

3 $85,000 $115,000 $105,000

4 $95,000 $139,000 $125,000

5 $120,000 $160,000 $150,000

6+ $130,000 $225,000 $184,000

DGC $155,000 $275,000 $225,000

GC $180,000 $600,000+ $300,000

Figures reer to total package

including benefts but

excluding bonuses and share

options.

Salary bands in the corporate market tend to be very broad. An individuals position within a band

will depend on a number o actors including background and experience o the individual, size

o the organization and its legal unction, industry sector and level o management responsibility

within the role. Please contact our consultants or tailored advice.

12

34

5

6+

DG

C

CG

12

34

5

6+

DG

C

GC



CORPORATE SALARIES } PERTHYear Level Range Mode

1 $65,000 $80,000 $77,000

2 $70,000 $94,000 $89,000

3 $85,000 $118,000$110,000

4 $100,000 $143,000 $131,000

5 $120,000 $160,000 $149,000

6+ $130,000 $240,000 $190,000

DGC $140,000 $260,000 $232,000

GC $170,000 $500,000+ $295,000

CORPORATE SALARIES } BRISBANEYear Level Range Mode1 $60,000 $77,500 $72,500

2 $65,000 $90,000 $82,500

3 $75,000 $110,000 $100,000

4 $90,000 $125,000 $118,500

5 $95,000 $155,000 $142,000

6+ $125,000 $220,000 $180,000

DGC $145,000 $250,000 $200,000

GC $150,000 $500,000+ $255,000

CORPORATE SALARIES } ADELAIDEYear Level Range Mode

1 $55,000 $76,000 $73,000

2 $70,000 $90,000 $85,500

3 $82,500 $108,000 $103,000

4 $88,000 $130,000 $117,000

5 $100,000 $150,000 $137,500

6+ $120,000 $200,000 $168,000

DGC $145,000 $225,000 $196,000

GC $150,000 $500,000+ $250,000




options.

Salary bands in the corporate market tend to be very broad. An individuals position within a band

will depend on a number o actors including background and experience o the individual, size

o the organization and its legal unction, industry sector and level o management responsibility

within the role. Please contact our consultants or tailored advice.

1 23

4 56+

DG

C

GC

1 23

45

6+DG

C

GC

1 23 4

56+

DGC

GC



CORPORATE LAWYER } BENEFITS OFFERED

TECHNOLOGYBlackberry/iPhone 51 54 63 72

Laptop/ipad 69 72 69 69

Mobile phone 62 60 60 56

FINANCIALShare plans/options 44 37 34 29

Additional Superannuation 29 33 31 28

Vehicle 19 16

Car parking 47 44 53 63

Income protection insurance 32 29 34 31

Lie insurance/private health insurance 26 34 20 13

Paid parental leave 55 16 50 47

Corporate credit card 60 62 61 57

LIFESTYLEReduced working days per week 38 32 36 37

Additional leave without pay 60 54 47 59

Working rom home 60 59 59 65

Emergency childcare/parents room 14 23 14 19

Extended/indenite leave 29 30 27 29

Purchase annual leave 31 30 31 35

CAREER DEVELOPMENTManagement training 66 71 61 57

Further study ull ees 41 38 38 32

Further study part ees 47 47 42 29

Paid study leave 53 48 45 40

Unpaid study leave 53 48 45 50

Proessional memberships 89 91 87 84

Secondments international 22 23 21 12

Secondments local 24 26 20 13Travel international 48 47 47 38

% o surveyed lawyers

2007

2008

2008

2009

2009

2010

2010

2011



COMPANYSECRETARIES

1.22% average salaryincrease

45% received a bonus

Rise in demand

Remuneration

Just under two thirds o company

secretaries received a salary review

in the past year. The signicant

proportion o company secretaries

not receiving a salary review

ref ects a continued conservative

approach towards remuneration

by corporations.

Almost two thirds o respondents

work or organisations oering

perormance based bonuses. Just

under hal o those surveyed actually

received a bonus this year. These

gures are slightly down on the

gures rom the previous year. The

main reasons cited by company

secretaries or not receiving a

bonus was that the company did

not perorm well enough or ongoingcaution o their employer.

Recruitment Activity

There is a noticeable improvement

in the demand or company

secretarial and corporate governance

proessionals at all levels in both

publicly listed and non-listed

organisations. Complex regulatory

requirements and increased market

scrutiny have made it necessary orcorporations to ocus on corporate

governance and compliance issues.

New regulatory regimes in the

areas o anti-money laundering and

counter-terrorism as well as nancing

and personal property securities

reorm have increased demand

or proessionals.

More in-house roles includeCo Sec responsibilities

Almost hal o respondents are

legally qualied. This trend is likely to

continue with an increasing number

o in-house legal roles, particularly

at the senior end, incorporating

company secretarial responsibilities.

Many lawyers are responding to this

development by adding company

secretarial skills and corporate

governance knowledge to their

current skill set.

Most company secretarial unctions

are relatively lean. This years

survey revealed that almost 90% o

corporate governance proessionals

worked in a company secretariat

o 15 people. O these, 44% are

working in solo roles compared to

40% last year.

More working on acontract basis

This year more company secretaries

are working on a contract basis. 12%

o respondents are employed in a

contract role compared to only 6%

last year. Some o the reasons or

employing a company secretary on

a contract basis include headcount,

budget restrictions or or a particular

corporate governance project.

The workload or company

secretaries remains relatively high.

Signicantly, more than 40% o

respondents said that their hourso work increased compared to last

year and approximately 50% said that

their hours have remained steady.

Almost 80% o respondents said

the size o their company secretariat

would stay the same next year.

This will lead to busy roles or

people within company secretariats

given the increased attention and

requirements in this area.

1/3 would considermoving to a role otherthan a co sec position

One third o respondents are

considering leaving their current

employer. This is a slight decrease

rom 40% last year. Most o those

looking to move want another

company secretarial role in a larger

company. For those looking to remain

with their current employer, themajor objective is to secure a more

senior role. Interestingly, nearly one

third o respondents said they would

consider moving to a role other than

a company secretary position. This is

a slight increase on last year.

The most common actors

inf uencing a company secretary to

join another organisation are career

development, greater remuneration

and the opportunity or strategicinput. A better work/lie balance

and working in a good team are also

key actors.


15/18

COMPANY SECRETARY } SALARIESPUBLICLY LISTED

State Range Mode

NSW $145,000 $480,000 $245,000

Vic $130,000 $450,000 $245,000

NOT PUBLICLY LISTED

State Range Mode

NSW $120,000 $300,000 $200,000

Vic $115,000 $290,000 $185,000




options.

Salary bands apply to individuals undertaking ull company secretary roles. There may be some

individuals in major companies who are earning outside the bands revealed by the survey, however

they would be the exception. Please contact our consultants or tailored advice.



COMPANY SECRETARIES } BENEFITS OFFERED

TECHNOLOGYBlackberry/iphone 50 50 73 52

Laptop/ipad 63 75 73 67

Mobile phone 56 63 33 56

FINANCIALAdditional Superannuation 25 13 27 31

Car parking 50 25 47 50

Income protection insurance 38 25 27 23

Lie Insurance / Health insurance 44 100 67 11

Paid parental leave 38 25 53 40

Corporate credit card 56 50 67 52

Vehicle 19 13 20 19

Travel insurance 31 25 33 40

Share plans/options 63 25 67 39

LIFESTYLEReduced working days per week 25 100 20 29

Additional leave without pay 53 50 33 17

Working rom home 50 88 60 50

Emergency childcare/parents room 0 13 27 15

Purchase additional leave 25 13 27 28

Additional annual leave 50

Extended/indenite leave 13 38 27 19

CAREER DEVELOPMENTMentoring/coaching 38 47 34

Management training 44 75 60 58

Further study ull ees 56 38 47 39

Further study part ees 36 13 47 34

Paid study leave 39 38 67 35

Unpaid study leave 31 38 47 33

Proessional memberships 87 100 93 74

Secondments international 25 100 13 10

Secondments local 13 13 13 10

Travel international 56 25 73 34

2007

2008

2008

2009

2009

2010

2010

2011

% o surveyed Company Secretaries



CONTRACTLAWYERS

Appointment o lawyerson a contract basisremains a noticeableeature o the corporatelegal market and apopular choice ororganisations.

Employers took advantage o the

high quality and large number o

lawyers happy to work on a contract

basis, regardless o whether this was

because o a personal preerence

or as an interim measure whilst that

lawyer looked or a permanent in-

house role.

Once principally the domain o seniorlawyers, a reasonable number o

contract roles were lled by junior

to intermediate level lawyers.

While some o these lawyers were

between roles due to redundancy or

having come back rom overseas, it

was interesting to see the number

o currently employed private

practitioners willing to consider a

contract role as a way o getting into

the corporate market.

Those lawyers who were successul

in gaining contract roles were able to

quickly add value given the quality o

the skills and experience they oered.

Contract opportunities continue to

occur where an extra legal resource

is required however concerns over

head count and ongoing costs

prevent a permanent appointment

being made. Corporations have also

utilised senior lawyers in contract

appointments to cover periods o

extended leave or a permanent sta

member on parental leave or long

service leave, to meet the spike in

work load caused by a special project

or to test the need or a permanent

employee. Some corporations

also recruited a contract lawyer

as an interim measure while they

conducted a permanent recruitment

or the same role.

Contract opportunities arose in the

corporate and government sectors.

Contract appointments are generally

remunerated on a pro rata basis on

market rates without any loading

(which has sometimes applied in

the past).


18/18

Sydney Level 9, 6 OConnell Street, Sydney 2000T: (02) 9241 1199 E: [email protected]

www.mahlab.com.au

Melbourne Level 1, 535 Bourke Street, Melbourne 3000T: (03) 9629 2111 E: [email protected]

Tw: @mahlabrecruit.com

mahlab survey 2011 corporate counsel

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